Following the Light
by Pyro Freak
Summary: There always was something strange about Riku...something restless. Destiny Islands just wasn't meant for him. But will his listen to his friend's advice and follow the path of light before it's too late, or venture into the unknown depths of darkness?
1. Chapter 1: New Playmates

AN: I've already got everything planned out for this story, and it's fairly short. I'll write the other four chapters and post them up as soon as I can. The first part occurs when Sora and the gang are very young. You know in the game when you see flashbacks of them as cute little kids?

**¤ 1 ¤**

**New Playmates**

Seagulls flew across the pale blue sky, and the morning sun shined down brightly upon Destiny Islands. A young boy with long white hair ran across the warm, yet soft sand and nimbly climbed up a ladder. He headed down the wooden walkway at the top and entered the small house of his best friend.

"Sora, you awake?" he said from the doorway. No answer. "Sora!" he said a little louder. He went inside and pushed aside the thin cloth covering the window. Sunlight filtered through it, and he heard a slight moan from behind him. But that was it.

Now irritated, he went over to the bed and tugged at the blanket till it came off. There lay his spiky-haired friend sleeping peacefully on a wonderful day. The blanket didn't make much of a difference though. He roughly shook his friend's shoulder until the signs of blissful sleep left him.

Sora looked at him sleepy-eyed and yawned, stretching his arms.

"Aw man, Riku. Watcha do that for? I was having such a nice dream. About this new kid that came to our island. We all had so much fun playing with him! He was really cool and-"

"Sora, you lazy bum. That's what I came to tell you about."

Sora rubbed his eye. "What?"

"We do have someone new to play with!" he announced. Sora's eyes brightened up at this, and any thoughts of sleep instantly vanished from his playful mind.

Riku held up two fingers. "And not just one, but _two_. Two girls our age." Sora jumped out of bed and pulled Riku's arm.

"Come on, let's go meet them right now!"

The boys raced down the walkway and literally jumped off the ladder. At the end of the beach, on the dock, were two forms dangling their legs off the edge.

"There they are!" Riku exclaimed. They both stopped in front of the new arrivals, huffing from running all the way. The girls turned to look at them with genuine curiosity. One was taller than the other, with auburn hair in short two braids and bright green eyes. The second girl was pretty with short maroon hair in a stylish pattern.

"Hi!" Sora said cheerfully, with a wide grin on his face. The shorter one giggled. He smiled back sheepishly. "Um…what's so funny?" Even Riku was laughing now, though he tried to suppress it. "Hey, somebody tell me!" Sora demanded, annoyed.

"You're in your pajamas, smart one," the taller girl said, eyeing him up and down. Sora looked down at himself.

"Oh." Then he added, "Yeah, so what?" Riku stepped, in attempt to make the conversation go better.

"So what are your names?" he asked. "I'm Riku- he jerked a thumb at his best friend- and this is my pal Sora."

"It's nice to meet you. I'm Kairi," the maroon-haired girl said, jumping off the dock. The taller girl did the same but jumped with more energy, landing farther. "My cousin here is-" she started.

"I'm Rina," the girl interrupted, holding out her hand. Sora looked at it, bewildered. He didn't know what to do and was about to give her a sideways high five, until Riku reached out and grabbed it. He shook her hand up and down, like he had seen the adults do.

"Show off," Sora muttered bitterly to him.

"Hey, it's not my fault you don't know any manners."

"Yeah, whatever." He crossed his arms and frowned. Kairi laughed at him once again, and Rina glanced at her.

"Don't let it bother you, Sora," she said smiling wryly. "I don't care much for manners anyway. But if you like, Kairi can teach you everything about formality." She pushed Kairi up with one hand.

"Why me?" Kairi asked confused, looking around with innocent eyes. Her older cousin chose to ignore her.

"Really?" Sora asked, excited. "I'll start taking lessons right away!"

"She was just joking Sora," Riku pointed out. Sora looked down in disappointment and rubbed his brown head.

"Oh…" He soon forgot what he was so disappointed about. "There's a secret cave behind the waterfall, covered by some trees." Riku looked at him like he was nuts. He nudged Sora in the side.

"Don't change the subject!" he whispered to him. His cheery friend continued on anyway.

"Wanna go check it out?" he asked eagerly.

"Hmph. A secret cave, huh?" Rina said smugly, trying to hide her curiosity. "All right, let's go then."

"Okay," Kairi agreed without any hassle. The two girls followed Sora as he ran across the sandy yellow beach.

Riku stayed behind.

He watched the sparkly blue water in front of him. It stretched on for miles and miles, as far as the human eye could see. The crystal clear water called out to him, its sweeping waves begging. A slight breeze whipped through his hair, and he felt a longing for something he didn't know of. Something...out _there_...

Rina stopped and looked back, noticing that they were missing someone.

"Riku!" she called out. "Are you coming or not?" He turned to look at her. A peculiar expression was on his face.

"Yeah...just hold on a sec." He took one last look at the sea. Rina watched him, and followed his sight to the water. She saw how he stared at the never ending depths of the seductive sea. There was something restless about him...

Fingers snapped in front of her face and she blinked, startled.

"Coming?" he asked smiling, with humor in his voice.

"Of course!" They headed after Sora and Kairi, running to catch up with them; completely unaware of what the future held.

AN: So what do you think? Any suggestions?


	2. Chapter 2: Riku's Birthday

**¤ 2 ¤**

**Riku's Birthday**

Many years later...

"Sora? Are you there?" Kairi called into the cave behind some trees. She tightly grasped the present in her hand and waited.

"Shhh!" someone said from inside. A hand reached out and covered her mouth, pulling her into the vicinity of the cave.

Behind them on the back wall, Kairi could see the chalk pictures that she and Sora had drawn of each other when they were younger. They weren't that great and were crudely drawn, but important memories nonetheless. Kairi had always loved to draw and she had tried to get Sora into it too. One day they decided to draw something and not show to each other untill they finished. They were surprised to find that they had both drawn the person next to them.

"Mmph!" Kairi mumbled through the hand.

"Sorry," Sora said. "You never know who could be listening. Even in such a remote area like this." He gestured his hand at the vacant cave.

"What are you doing here?" she asked him. "You haven't forgotten about Riku's 15th birthday, have you?"

"I know, I know!" he exclaimed, holding his head in frustration. "But I still don't have a present. I don't know what to give him." He sat down on a nearby rock and sighed. "And he's my best friend too. You would think I'd come up with the perfect gift. But after so many years, I've completely run out of ideas. Oh, Kairi..." He looked at her earnestly. "What should I do?"

She laid a gentle hand on his shoulder. "It's all right, Sora. Calm down. Being a good friend is enough of a present. Tell him how much you appreciate his friendship."

He looked up at her in inquiry. "You think that'll be enough?"

"I'm sure he'll love it! Now come on, we better go. There's no time for moping."

"Yeah, you're right. Besides, he wouldn't think any less of me if I didn't get him a present."

Kairi nodded in agreement. Sora stood up and followed her. They left the cave and walked around the waterfall, entering the Seaside Shack. They walked up the stairs in the corner and found themselves outside. To their right was a wooden bridge leading to a small island; Riku's favorite place. They headed across the bridge and onto the island.

They found Riku leaning against a paopu tree. Rina was sitting atop its thick trunk, holding something oddly shaped.

"Hi!" Kairi said while Sora hid behind her, looking anywhere except at Riku. "This is no time to be shy," she whispered to him. "You were pretty confident back there."

"I know, but..." He nervously fiddled with his hands, and Kairi looked at him sympathetically.

Meanwhile, Rina jumped off the paopu tree with her usual sprightliness.

"So, shall we began?" she asked. She hid her present behind her and looked from Riku to Sora and Kairi. She had that sneaky smile of hers on her ever expressive face. That "I- know-how-to-annoy-you" kind of smile.

Not getting a reply, she continued on. "We should start with the birthday song first."

Riku glanced at her and narrowed his eyes.

"Please, spare me the embarrassment," he said impatiently.

"Oh, is Mr. Arrogant too old for these kind of things?" Rina walked over to him and poked him in the chest. He avoided her question and looked away instead.

_He's still the same,_ she thought. _That's good. But after all these years, something's changed. He's even more_ _pursuing than before. I can tell by the way he's been acting lately. He's not wishing to leave..._ _is he? _

Rina didn't know what to think, and she was concerned for her friend. But she decided it wasn't the best time to bring up moments like this, especially at what was supposed to be a happy event.

"Time for presents then!" she announced excitedly.

Sora nearly choked.

"Uh, you first Kairi," he said faking a decent smile. He pushed her forward, and she gave him a disapproving look.

"Cut it out, Sora." To Riku she said proudly, "I did a painting for you. I hope you like it."

She held out a thin, rectangular present. Riku took it and started the process of unwrapping. After a few seconds he finally managed to pull off the string. He's eyes widened respectively at the beautiful painting of Destiny Islands' sunset. The sky was a rain of blended colors and the water glistened below it. At the very bottom was the very dock the four friends had first met.

"Wow!" he said astonished. "You're a great artist, Kairi. This has got to be your best masterpiece yet."

She giggled. "Thanks, I spent a lot of time on it."

"Yeah, I can tell. I love it."

"That's good to hear."

Sora took one look at the painting and was jealous. His present wasn't _that_ great. Soon, all eyes were on Sora.

"I, uh..." he muttered sheepishly. Riku cocked his head and looked at him curiously as Sora nervously fiddled with his hands once again. Sora continued his muttering incoherently. "Don't have... a present, yeah. But, um...want you to know...that I—I—"

This time it was Kairi's turn to push him up. Except she pushed him a bit too hard. Sora held his arms out to break his fall—they fell around Riku instead.

AN: I'm listening to some KH music right now and I'm really enjoying myself. Simple & Clean is such a great song. In English _and_ Japanese. That's how well she sings. That reminds me, I should pull out my Utada Hikaru cd. Who doesn't love her and j-pop? Oh, and now I'm heading off to watch the beginning of Kingdom Hearts again. Seriously, I will never get tired of watching that. It's almost like a hobby now.


	3. Chapter 3: The Final Present

**¤ 3 ¤**

**The Final Present**

"Ijustwannasaythankyouforbeingmyfriend!" Sora spit out quickly, squishing his words together. His cheeks instantly turned red.

Riku put his strong arms around his best friend and returned the hug.

"You're welcome," he said.

Sora slowly pulled a way and they held each other at arm's length. Foolish grins spread across their faces and they laughed openheartedly like brothers.

"Ha! You haven't changed one bit Sora. You're still the same old lazy bum I once knew. Didn't even have enough energy to make me a present, eh?"

"Wha—hey!"

Riku threw an arm around Sora's shoulder and pinched his cheek. "Just kidding man. Don't get all fussed up over it."

Sora pushed his hand away. "Don't do that! It hurts."

They laughed at each other again and the girls were glad to see the boys were enjoying themselves.

Once that was over, Riku remembered that there was still one more present left.

"So, Rina," he said mockingly, poking his face into hers and pointing down at what she was holding. "What have you got there?"

Annoyed, she practically threw it at him.

He stumbled back surprised, and caught it. "Whoa!"

He carefully unwrapped the cloth, revealing a small wooden ship that Rina had carved herself. It wasn't any glorious piece of art, but she'd put her best effort into it.

"It's kinda simple," she explained. "I haven't really seen any ships before." Riku didn't hear her.

Something clicked inside of Riku the second the he saw the ship. It was as if his future was laid out before him. The ship meant something to him, something important. He stared at it, the world him around a clouded in daze.

No one said anything as he faced the sea and held the ship at eye level, so that it appeared to be on the water. He moved it up and down in a wavy sort of motion, pretending it was riding the waves.

They all watched him intensely, especially Rina.

_How could've I have done such a thing?_ she thought despairingly. _Why did I have to give him_ _a gift like _**that**_? I should've known the ship would remind him of the sea again. But I didn't think. I was too stupid to realize it. _

Sora saw that something was wrong. He took a cautious step towards Riku.

"Riku...?" he said softly.

Riku spun around, his tranquility broken.

"Huh?"

Sora didn't know what to say; he didn't know how to ask the question. And he was afraid of the answer.

"Nothing."

Kairi attempted to make the situation happy, not really realizing what was going on.

"Well, we've all given our presents to Riku. Shall we go eat now?"

"Yeah, sure why not," Riku mumbled.

They left the island and crossed the bridge, entering the Seaside Shack. They headed up to the houses built high into a wall of rock. The entire way, as they climbed, Riku absentmindedly stroked the carved ship.

Rina and Riku sat at the edge of the docks, their feet almost touching the water.

"What do you want to be when you grow up?" she asked him.

Riku didn't have to think for very long.

"Well, I wanna be an adventurer. You know, see rare sights and stuff. I could even make my own map of the world."

Rina really regretted asking that question. Everything she did seemed to be wrong these days. Even now, she still hadn't learned her lesson about being cautious. No one else knew about this other side of Riku. She supposed that was her fault; she hadn't mentioned it to anyone. Why should they know anyway? What if she was just hallucinating or something?

Rina figured she'd better change the subject. She smiled faintly at him and said, "Um, yeah. That's very cool Riku."

Neither of them said anything, and there were a few moments of silence between them.

"Um, Riku?" she said hesitantly.

He didn't look at her. "Yeah, what?"

"My grandmother once told me something." She stopped to see if he was listening, but his face was expressionless and his eyes had this far away look. "At the end of every tunnel is source of light. You just have to find it. She told me to never give up hope, that there's always a right solution to things. If you look for it hard enough, you'll find the path of light."

Riku's eyes widened in awareness. _She knows something..._ he thought. _Could she...? No, that's not possible. _He dismissed the thought as insignificant.

Rina continued talking. "Riku, for every problem there is more than one option. Even if you think otherwise. I don't want you to be making any wrong decisions in your life. Understand? You must always follow the light, Riku. " She looked hopefully at him, hoping that she had made some kind of impact on him. She noticed that he was holding the ship he'd given her.

What happened next was the unexpected.

"You know what Rina? You're a strong and wise person, I like that." He reached out and grasped her hand.

Rina was startled. She just sat there, staring at him in a bewildered state.

"Riku—what're you—are you okay?" He finally looked at her.

"Uh...you're not blushing?" he asked.

"What???"

He quickly took his hand away. His face was changing color instead. _Stupid Sora!_ he thought, feeling very much like an idiot himself. _I can't believe I actually listened to everything he said! He said that—grr! Forget what he said! Never should ask _**him**_ for advice. _

Rina really thought it was time for her to leave. As she got up, she heard something behind her.

"You think they're having _a moment_?" someone whispered.

"I don't know, Sora."

Apparently, Kairi and Sora had been spying on them the whole time.

"I'll show _you_ who's having a moment!" Rina said, enraged.

She ran after Sora, threatening to pull his hair out. He had so much it wouldn't have mattered, really. Kairi laughed at them while Riku flopped onto the sand in a broken state, his ship laying his stomach.

_Life's going swell, isn't it?_


	4. Chapter 4: Riku's Dark Side

**¤ 4 ¤**

**Riku's Dark Side**

Riku was sitting on the beach shore in a joyful mood. He was playing with his new toy and was glad that wood floated in water. The ship would have been quite boring otherwise.

Sora came looking for him that day, and when he found him, he wasn't pleased at all.

"Riku, you haven't let go of that ship since Rina gave it to you," he pointed out directly.

Riku ignored him and continued what he was doing. He didn't care for what Sora had to say.

"And that's not a toy!" Sora said a little louder. "It's a decorative item, for goodness sake. I understand that you cherish it but—hello, are you even listening to me?"

Once again, Riku said nothing. His ship kept on sailing.

Sora was starting to lose it now. He was really getting hectic. He glanced at ship and came to a conclusion that satisfied him. _That ship is bad for Riku, I know it._ He feared he'd have to do the worst: take it away from him.

"Stop it Riku!" he commaned. Sora reached in front of him and plucked the ship right out his hands.

A sudden change overcame Riku. His face darkened and a fire glowed in his azure eyes. The wind whistled around them, sweeping his silvery white hair this way and that.

"Give—it—back!" he snarled viciously.

Sora was taken aback. He was literally shocked to the bone. Never before had Riku yelled at him. Never. He bit his lip and quivered. The ship slowly fell out his hands. Time slowed down as they both watched the wooden ship fall through the air and land soundlessly onto the sand.

"I knew it..." Sora whispered. "I knew it. You're not you anymore!" Then he ran.

The wind stopped abruptly and Riku's eyes returned to normal. It took him a few seconds to register what he'd done. He hadn't meant to do it, really. But Sora had tried to take away his dream! That was no reason to get mad at him...was it?

"Sora! Please, come back!" he called desperately. "I'm sorry..." His words just drifted into the air, unheard by anyone.

Riku fell on his knees and clutched his head in despair.

_What's wrong with me?_

Kairi bumped into her cousin with a loud thud.

"Oofh!" they both said, falling onto the walkway.

"Jeez, watch out Kairi! Are you okay?" Rina got up and brushed herself. She held out a helping hand to her cousin. Kairi grasped it and Rina pulled her up.

She took a breather before answering. "Yeah, I'm fine. But forget me. Sora—he's crying."

"What? Are you serious?" Rina inquired, worried. "What happened?"

"I don't know, he said something about Riku."

"Riku?! But—"

"Exactly. I've never seen those two fight before. Well, I really can't say they were fighting, but—"

"Let's go see what this is all about," Rina interrupted. "Something must be terribly wrong if Sora has a reason to cry."

"You're right. He's under a palm tree in the Cove."

"Okay, let's go."

They found him exactly where Kairi said he was. He was sitting up against the palm tree, holding his legs. He looked up when the he saw the tall shadow of Rina's form connected to the tree's own shadow.

"Rina!" He seemed glad to see her. "Riku—he…" He couldn't continue. Sora let his head droop and went back to clutching his legs.

"I think know," she said. "He—" She quickly stopped, realizing that Kairi was still there. Kairi looked at her with intense curiosity. Rina didn't want to worry her; Kairi always overdid things. She would get so worried about Riku that she wouldn't even eat.

"Er—Kairi. Will make a little something for Sora to eat? You know, his fav. That oughta cheer him up."

Kairi nodded and said, "Sure, I'll be back in a jiffy."

Kairi stood at the waterfall before the secret cave. She looked up and sighed. The wind blew the fresh scent of water into her face, and she blink in the presence of such serenity. She looked down at her reflection in the pool.

_I'm not stupid. I know she sent me away on purpose. Rina still thinks I'm a sweet little girl. But I'm not._

Everyone always said Rina was strong. But inside, she was strong too. She would face whatever was about come without fear. Nobody had to protect her by keeping secrets—she could take the truth. But she doubted her friends would reveal anything to her. All she knew was that it had something to do with Riku.

_Hm... Perhaps nothing's really wrong and things aren't as bad I think they are. I should stop worrying so much. _She sighed deeply and kicked a lone pebble into the waterfall. _I better get to the kitchen._

"Sora, you can stop crying now." For once, Rina reached out a comforting arm and put it around him.

"I know," he said, his nose clogged up. "I don't even have a reason to cry. But I never thought that Riku would..."

"It's all right. No need to give me the details." She looked up at the sky above, which was as blue as ever. The fluffy white clouds sailed across at their own slow speed. Rina sighed and slouched against the tree, her eyes closed.

Sora wiped his face and looked at her. "Thanks. You're usually not the one to console people." This brought a smile across her face, and she appeared to be back to her old self. Rina sat straight up and clapped him across the head.

He winced and shouted, "Hey!"

"Yeah, crybaby. What're you doing bawling down here anyway? Our island will be no more if you keep the waterworks pouring." This made Sora laugh, and he completely forgot about rubbing the ache in his head.

"I wasn't bawling," he protested in a happy manor.

"Sure. So shall we head back the cabin? I'm sure Kairi's waiting for you." Sora nodded vigorously, sniffing the air.

"Definitely! I can smell it from here!"

Rina smiled wryly. "First one to get there gets two-thirds of it?" she challenged.

"You're on!" Sora replied confidently.

They raced to their destination, Sora running like mad and Rina having no doubts about losing. At the last second Rina changed her mind and slowed down a bit. The race ended up being a tie with Sora not noticing the change in Rina's speed.

"Wow, I think you've improved Sora." He grinned at her proudly.

"You think so? But how do you know you haven't gotten worse, huh?"

"Hmph. Yeah, right. _My_ abilities don't degrade."

They took a step toward the house, the delicious smell of Kairi's cooking wafting to their noses. Sora put a hand on Rina's shoulder and stopped her. He had one last question left.

"Rina, Riku's changed, hasn't he?" he asked. There was a serious look on his face. But Rina never saw it. She brushed his hand off and entered the house. She didn't look back nor did she answer him.

AN: You know, I'm thinking of changing Rina's name. I realized that another girl in one of my stories has the same name. But I can't think of something better at the moment. I might as well leave it the way it is. Chapter 5 is finished, but I'm going to wait a while before I put it up...


	5. Chapter 5: Departure

AN: Ok, I lied. I guess I didn't need to be pestered at all. This is the end. Thanks to those of you who've read this far. I really hope you like this last chapter. I still think something's wrong with it. I had a hard time coming up with Riku's words at the end. I was trying to get into his head after that particular scene in the game. But things just didn't work out right. But yeah, I did my best and I guess that's what counts.

**¤ 5 ¤**

**Departure**

Sora woke up with a start as thunder rumbled outside. _You know what? I'm done with all these mysterious stuff! I can't take it anymore. Something is wrong with Riku and I'm going to find out. Right now. _

He hastily got out of bed, not even bothering to grab something to shield himself from the cold. _I just hope this has nothing to do with that invisible stranger I met by the door in the secret cave. He said something about other worlds, ones beyond our little sea. Now that I think of it, Riku mentioned something about leaving Destiny Islands. I really don't know why he'd want too. _

A sudden sickness arrived in Sora's stomach, and he knew it wasn't the average stomachache. This was a bad feeling, almost like a premonition. And it wasn't about just anything. It had to do with his best friend. He thought of only one thing as he rushed out of the doorway: _I have to stop_ _Riku!_

There was an eerie silence outside, and the night sky seemed darker than usual. Sora glanced up by chance and saw something that made his stomach drop even lower. There, in the precious sky above Destiny Islands, was a gargantuan ball of—darkness. The giant mass swirled with purplish colors, getting larger by the second. What scared him even more was the fact that the darkness was over the adjacent island; Riku's island, where paopu trees grew.

_No... No! _Sora sprinted as fast as he could through the Seaside Cabin and out into the Cove. The bridge to the island was only a few feet away from him. He ran across the bridge and skidded to halt. Riku's stood in front of him, his back facing him. Something besides the wind seemed to blowing around him, slightly hindering Sora's vision.

"Riku! What are you doing out here?" Sora yelled out into the night air. Riku's face barely turned around. There was a determined look on his face that sent the chills through Sora.

"The door has opened Sora. The time has finally come," he said nonchalantly.

Sora was shocked and confused at the same time. _The door?__ He doesn't mean the one in the secret cave does he?_

Tendrils of darkness swirled around Riku's feet and slowly crawled around him. He held out a gloved hand. Sora reached for it with his own hand, as the black tendrils started sweeping about him too. Their fingers were inches away and—

Sora suddenly pulled back. _No, this isn't right!_ he thought. _Following the path of darkness is just wrong! That's not how things are done. _Sora's mouth opened a little. He wanted to tell Riku what he thought. __

Riku's eyes narrowed. He had been almost certain that Sora would come with him. But then he had his doubts too.

"Fine, do as you wish. Let it be this way."

The darkness completely enveloped him and the last thing Riku saw was the concerned look on his best friend's face. His body seemed to lose its mass and he simply fell, deeper and deeper into the dark void. He lost control over his body for a seconds and he lurched over, almost curved into a ball. Something flowed into him, filling him entirely. He burst from his ball-shaped form and flexed his arms admirably.

_Yes, this is it. I can feel the power... You, darkness, shall help me achieve my dream. _Riku's maleficent laugh echoed back to him—he had never laughed like that before. At such a strange moment, piercing words came flooding back to him:

**"I don't want you to be making any wrong decisions in your life."**

_What? __Who...Rina?_

Riku held his head in agony as his emotions mixed and mingled with each other.

_Ahhh__!!_

He didn't know what to think anymore. Rina's words were thrown at him from every direction. His hands feverishly clenched and opened, and his eyes widened immensely.

_Ugh...what...have I done? Did I...make the wrong choice? No...that's not possible..._

**"If you look for it hard enough, you'll find the path of light."**

Riku let go of his head and deeply breathed in and out to a steady beat.

_Huh? The path of light...? _

**"At the end of every tunnel is source of light."**

A sudden realization came to Riku. If this kept this up, the darkness would eventually swallow him whole. He had felt its power before, but that power wasn't for him. Not yet anyway. His mind gradually started losing consciousness, and he struggled to keep his mentality.

_No, I will not succumb to the darkness! I am...stronger that that... _

He extended his arm, reaching for what wasn't there.

_Rina...I'm sorry to disappoint you like this. You must me mad at me. I...didn't listen to your advice._

**"You must always follow the light, Riku."**

_Perhaps there's a way around this after all...but how?_

**"...never give up hope...there's always a right solution to things."**

_Must...fight it...or this is all for nothing! Gyaa!!_

Riku clutched his chest vainly and focused his will on one thing: getting the force of darkness out of him. He wouldn't allow it to take over him—no, he would command it instead. Thick black tendrils shot of him and writhed in the endless nothingness. They anxiously poked at him, trying to get through, but a shining shield encircled Riku. He lifted his head up from the mental pain and smiled faintly.

_Heh, it will take more than that to overcome me. My will power is impenetrable... You will not use me! _

An illusion of Kairi's cute beaming face appeared before him. Riku's eyes softened and he lost some of his vigor.

_Kairi... You were always so sweet, just like coconut juice..._

Rina's composed look followed after. She peered at him with a questioning eyebrow, smiling in her own sneaky way.

_Rina... Still looking for fun, eh?_

Then finally, Sora's friendly and lovable smile.

_Sora... Stupid Sora, you'll never change..._

His eyes closed peacefully, and he made a solemn vow to himself.

_I'll come back for you guys...I promise. _

**"...follow the light..."**

AN: That's the end guys. There isn't any more to it than that, that's all I had in mind. . If you liked this, I suggest you read my poem about Riku. It more or less goes with the story.


End file.
